Tributes have been paid to a 'greatly missed' Nottinghamshire journalist and 'truly wonderful' person. Katrina Taylor, who was a reporter for the Chad newspaper, died on Saturday, July 1.
Katrina was diagnosed with a brain tumour in early 2022, at around the time she was offered a permanent contract at the Mansfield and Ashfield-based paper. Despite her long illness, her editor Jon Ball explained she remained a valued part of our team, with the pair entering discussions about her potential phased, part-time return to work a few months ago.
Unfortunately, her condition then deteriorated. "Katrina is greatly missed as a journalist, even more so as a truly wonderful person," Jon said.
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"She had ambitions of being an editor. I have no doubt she would have made it and been a very good one at that. Despite her long illness, she remained a valued part of our team, frequently sending me tip-offs and story ideas."
Katrina worked as a community news reporter, which is a role funded by Facebook, now Meta, to train people from non-typical backgrounds in a bid to increase the diversity of newsrooms. Jon said "Kat was a perfect fit" for the project, as she had a distinctive way of championing causes.
"As one of her tutors said, 'she just had a very special way of engaging with people and championing their causes, giving them a voice'.
"That is not to say she wasn’t afraid to upset people. She was as brave and tenacious a reporter as you would expect. Her courage was evident not just in the stories she chased, but also the deeply personal tales she shared – from being a victim of sexual harassment, to losing her baby – in the hope of helping other people going through similar experiences.
